Hello TBG - I wanted to write a brief post complementing this site and declaring my recent success on the "June $2500 build"! My son and I had a great time working on this build. I followed the how to guides on this site and purchased all the components as linked in the build guide. I did want to provide the feedback however, that the Corsair Liquid Cooler does not fit in the Silverstone Primera case with the motherboard specified in the build list. To be perfectly clear, the three components in question are:MOTHERBOARD: Asus ROG Strix Z270E GamingCASE: SilverStone Primera PM01CPU COOLER: Corsair Hydro H100i v2 Liquid Cooler

I know it is stated on this site that all configurations are tested, but the cooler will not fit in the top of this case without modification. I shifting to either side without any luck. The motherboard has a component that blocks the fans if you try to use any of the standard mounting holes. The modification I needed to use was to drill two new "custom" mounting holes in the case to allow for an offset mounting of the radiator. This was a bit nerve wracking. All in all, I got everything in and the build looks awesome and works great! However, in the spirit of "positive feedback", and as a potential warning to future builders however, these components will not simply fit out of the box. I suggest either a warning or a slight modification of the components (perhaps a different motherboard would allow for a better fit?)...

I will repeat again however, that with the exception of this snag, I appreciate all the other great info I received on this site!

As it happens, I have tested the PM01 and Corsair H100i v2 cooler with a different Asus board, and know that the clearance is tight. But another reader recently built this exact system, and was able to just barely fit the Corsair H100i v2 in over the Asus Z270E motherboard, as shown here:

The biggest issue was the RAM, which really cannot be removed once inserted, as the releases are covered by the cooler. As an alternative for builders not willing to mess with this tight clearance, the H100i v2 can be easily attached to the front of the chassis, with the SilverStone case fans blowing inwards through the radiator. The Corsair fans can then be mounted on the top for exhaust duties.

By the way, Tim, as long as you're here, consider signing up for the prize drawing being run on the forum through June 20th!

Here's another photo of the system, showing potential builders of this system how they must position the H100i v2 cooler to avoid interference with the Asus 270E motherboard heatsink when using the PM01 case.

After re-measuring the sample Thermaltake and SilverStone cases I have on hand, I've decided to swap the SilverStone PM01 case in the $2,500 build for the Thermaltake F31 in the $2,000. The PM01 is an awesome air-cooled case, so it's a better match for the air-cooled $2,000 system, while the Thermaltake case offers better headroom and cable clearance for the liquid-cooled $2,500 build.

Thanks again for providing your feedback. I've reached out to my contact at SilverStone to explain the situation, as I think it's something SilverStone really needs to address in its official specifications. To be clear, I currently run an H100i v2 in a PM01 case and it fits, but it's very tight, and this really shouldn't happen when the case is spec'd for larger 280mm coolers.

Due to some massive changes in market conditions (rising prices on RAM, SSDs, and the GTX 1080 Ti), this system has been completely overhauled for September 2017 with dual GTX 1080 cards in SLI, with less of the budget spent on RAM and storage.

on saturday I ordered all the parts for the August 2017 2.5K build.The last few of those will arrive tomorrow.This is my first ever custom build pc (actually my first ever gaming pc).

My problem right now is, that the build page was replaced with the September version and now I can't look up the "Guru's Tips" anymore, where Guru recommends what to do with certain parts and especially where to put certain fans. I wanted to ask, if anyone could tell me about everything, that isn't super straightforward (like put RAM sticks into RAM slots ) or if you still have a copy of that page laying around, Guru, could you link that somewhere?

And in case it matters: The only changes I made to the build are 16 instead of 32 Gigs of RAM and I use a F31 Suppressor without a window (none of these should matter, but better safe than sorry).

Any help's appreciated, thank you.

Hex

PS: Btw, this is the best build guide side I was able to find. Everything here is just so... nice, dunno what to call it. Keep it up!

on saturday I ordered all the parts for the August 2017 2.5K build.The last few of those will arrive tomorrow.This is my first ever custom build pc (actually my first ever gaming pc).

My problem right now is, that the build page was replaced with the September version and now I can't look up the "Guru's Tips" anymore, where Guru recommends what to do with certain parts and especially where to put certain fans. I wanted to ask, if anyone could tell me about everything, that isn't super straightforward (like put RAM sticks into RAM slots ) or if you still have a copy of that page laying around, Guru, could you link that somewhere?

And in case it matters: The only changes I made to the build are 16 instead of 32 Gigs of RAM and I use a F31 Suppressor without a window (none of these should matter, but better safe than sorry).

Any help's appreciated, thank you.

Hex

PS: Btw, this is the best build guide side I was able to find. Everything here is just so... nice, dunno what to call it. Keep it up!

Welcome to the TBG Forum and thanks for the positive feedback, Hex!

Indeed, the $2,500 change was completely overhauled for September, but the guru's tips are still available in list format for August - here's the link. Note that this doesn't have all the links or images from the buyer's guide, but it includes the full text, so you should have everything you need. Any remaining questions, just post them here!

Indeed, the $2,500 change was completely overhauled for September, but the guru's tips are still available in list format for August - here's the link. Note that this doesn't have all the links or images from the buyer's guide, but it includes the full text, so you should have everything you need. Any remaining questions, just post them here!

Thanks for the quick answer. Assembly starts either tomorrow or the day after (depending on when the parts finally arrive; waiting for GPU, cooling and RAM). If any questions arise, I'll make sure to stop by.

Just to make sure, this is how the fans are supposed to be setup, right?:

Actually not. A friend of mine just noticed a mistake with the GPU. It's supposed to be the other way around, like this:I have to say, I like this setup of all fans taking in air from a center pool and dispersing it in different directions.

One question, could a little bit of vaccuum in the case due to air output > air intake cause more dust to get inside through little holes and stuff?

The fan on the GPU actually is an intake fan, but since you can't adjust it either way, you don't have to worry about setting it up! The fan pulls in air from below and exhausts out the back of the case, at least in part.

I know a lot of builders think that positive pressure will avoid dust build up, but so much dust settles in the case even when the system is off that it doesn't matter. That's especially true with cases that have open top vents, like this one. More important is properly cooling the system, which is what you'll be doing here. Dust buildup is a secondary concern.

The fan on the GPU actually is an intake fan, but since you can't adjust it either way, you don't have to worry about setting it up! The fan pulls in air from below and exhausts out the back of the case, at least in part.

I know a lot of builders think that positive pressure will avoid dust build up, but so much dust settles in the case even when the system is off that it doesn't matter. That's especially true with cases that have open top vents, like this one. More important is properly cooling the system, which is what you'll be doing here. Dust buildup is a secondary concern.

Guess I can learn alot from you. Thanks for clearing that up.Gotta go to bed now, tho. It's almost 2:00 AM here.